Automatic repeating gas pistol



' Sept. 7, 1954 R. s. MARTIN 2,688,321

AUTOMATIC REPEATING GAS PISTOL Filed Sept. 14; 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVEN TOR. Rokri SMarfin,

QZW/

A TTORNEY Sept. 7, 1954 R. s. MARTIN 2,688,321

AUTOMATIC REPEATING GAS PISTOL Filed Sept. 14, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 I N V EN TOR. JQoberi S Marfin, Y

A TTORIVEY Patented Sept. 7, 1954 UNITED STATES rm OFFICE "2,688,321 AUTOMATIC REPEATING GAS PISTOL Roberts. Martin, Los Angeles. Calif. Application September 14, 1950, Serial No. 184,731

2 Claims. 1

.This invention relates to fluid pressure operatecl guns, particularlypistolsand rifles, which operate on the airor gas storage and release principle, but the invention is not limited to these devices.

Airpistols andrifles use a pumpingmechanism to :store air under "pressure within a'chamber where it is released by the striking action of'a hammer uponavalva'causing the latter to .open andrreleasethe compressed air or gas into the :barrelbehindra projectilaas a pellet or ball, ej ecting-thelatter-with varying decrease of force and velocity. -Gas pistolsand/or rifiesemploy similar principles ofv storage without; however, the necessity 10f pumping V or compression since the gas is already 3 available fin lcompressed condition i under pressure either i in small bulbs, such as the conventional Sparklet or Soda King CO2 bulb, or in larger --cylinders of carbon dioxide which, 'by means-of ,a check valve or other suitable mechanism, is introduced into a long :cylinderattached tozithepistol or rifle l in the formof a secondary :harrel; thei'principle of release of'thesaid gas .intoathe actual rifle or pistol barrel to eject the projectile ztherein is substantially the same.

Another rmethod :for thestorage and release pf s'gas' where the gas is i in 1a bulb container is ..to 'rinsertuthe rsaid :ioulb ainto the grip .or butt of the pistol, sealingrthe-same therein-"and piercing the bulbflncsuch ar'manner as to meter the gas :into'aistorageichamber which surrounds-the: pistol or rifle barrel; then by means of aitrippingeifect 'a sleeve which surrounds therrifle-ortpistol barrel is forced 'back, sexposin'g ropenings :inxthe rifle or pistol barrel through which the store'd gas' escapes and expelstheiprojectile seated'in the tifiedbar- Tel. iUpon' theexpulsion' of theigasifrom. therabove described-storage chamben the sleeve is reset by :means -of a :reset :button, 'a lever is pulled' back iagainymetering gas fromthe' bulb 1.111501116 51701- age chamber and soon. :The foregoing methods 'for the storage "and ."release .iofgas or airrin'thesaid air or gas 1 rifles and pistols-rare awkward and havercertain draw- PbflifikS; .forzexample, the pumping o'f' air'or the .release ofsair or gas intoa storage chamber'where =.the saidimedium mustttheni be released'by il'llEELILS .df a'ham'mer striking'a valve produces "a hard triggertpulland destroys precision in shootingthe fforcenecessary' to openthevalvebeing great. In :addition, ithe valves have a tendency to leak. .Wheregasl is meteredf from a bulb into a-storage chamber, the operation is slow, and 'theiuserrxis .iimited toz a single shot, after which a :number or: operations must take place before another shot ismossible.

trigger pulled and the invention taken online 8-8 of Fig.

An important object ofthe invention is to provide an air or gas pistol andrifle, whichis constructed and arranged to overcome the disadvantage of the conventional air or gas pistols and rifles as above described.

Another object is to provide an air or gas pistol or rifle which eliminates the need for metering air or gas into the storage chamber thereof.

Another object is to provide anair pistol or rifle including means for automatically refilling the storage chamber thereof, so that the operationof the pistol or rifle may becontinuedwithout resetting or metering until the gas inthe bulb supplying the storage chamber isexhausted.

Another object is to provide an air pistol or rifle-in which is eliminated the need fora hammerzor alike device for opening a valve to allow the air or gas to escape into the barrel for the purpose of propelling a projectile.

A further object of my invention is to provide an air pistol or rifle in which the rate of flow of the gas, from the storage chamber into .the:pisto1 or rifle barrel, is increased, thus cutting down the timelag as well as increasing-the actual pressure of the gas itself upon the projectile.

- Other objects and advantages-will appear hereinafter as thisspecification progresses.

The invention is illustrated in the annexed drawings, which forma part of this specification, and in which:

Fig. 1-is a side elevation of an air or gas pistol embodying my invention, showin the pistol in cocked position for shooting the same.

Fig. 2 isa longitudinal section of'my' pistol as shown in Fig. '1, with the pistol shown loaded and-cocked, for shooting same.

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section of my air or gas pistol, showing the position of the parts after the pistolhas been shot.

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary longitudinal section, on an enlarged scale, of theloading means'o-f my pistol, shown in'its cocked position, as shown in Fig. 2.

.Fig. 5 is a fragmentary longitudinal section,,0n air-enlarged scale of the loading meanszof my pistol, shown in its position after :being shot, as shown in Fig. 3.

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary longitudinal section 'of a modification of my invention, on an'enlarged scale, showing the same'in cocked positionbefore the trigger is pulled to project a bullet.

Fig.7 is a view like Fig.6, but showing the tion for projecting a bullet.

:Fig, 8 is a transverse vertical sectionofimy parts brought into posi-' Fig. 9 is a transverse vertical'section of my invention taken on line 9-4] of Fig. 7.

Fig. 10 is a transverse vertical section of my invention taken on line IIII 5 of Fig. '7.

Fig. 11 is a transverse vertical section of my invention taken on line I I-I I of Fig. '7.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, in which the same parts are designated by the same reference numerals in all of the views, my invention, as illustrated in Figs. 1, 2 and 3 in the form .of a pistol, includes generally a breech I; a barrel 2 extending forwardly from said breech; a handle 3 depending rearwardly at an angle from said breech; a conventional air or gas storage bulb 4 detachably retained within said handle; an elongated barrel tube 5 slidably mounted in said barrel 2 and extending from within the rear part of the breech I through said barrel 2; a loading means 6 for loading a tube 1 containing pellets 8 in the rear part of said barrel tube 5; a trigger mechanism 9 for controlling projection of said bullets 8 from said loading tube I; and spring seal actuating means II] controlled by said trigger mechanism for admitting air from said air or gas storage bulb 4 into said barrel tube 5 behind the foremost pellet in said loading tube I in said loading means 6 in the rear end of said barrel tube for projecting said pellet from the forward end of a loading tube I through said barrel tube, when said trigger mechanism is actuated by pulling its trigger II.

The loading means 6 comprises the rear end portion I2 of the barrel tube 5, which portion of said tube receives the cartridge I containing bullets 8; a cap I3 threaded at I4 on the rear end of said rear end portion I2 of said barrel tube 5, which cap engages the rear end of said cartridge I for positioning said cartridge properly in loaded position in said rear end portion I2 of the barrel projection tube 5, in which rear end portion I2 of said tube are located a plurality of air or gas ports I5 at the rear of the first pellet 8 in the forward end of said cartridge 1; a ring gasket I6 slidably fitted on said barrel tube 5 and closing said ports I5 when said tube 5 is in retracted position; a trigger mechanism sear II secured on said rear end portion of the barrel projection tube 5, which sear is engaged by an engaging arm I8 on the forward end of a barrel tube arresting lever I9 of the trigger mechanism 9, for holding the barrel projection tube 5 in its retracted and cooked position; and a coil spring 20 surrounding said rear end portion I2 of the barrel tube 5 between said sear I1 and a shoulder wall 20' of the breech I, against which spring 20 is compressed when the barrel tube 5 is retracted and the pistol is cocked.

In the forward end portion of the breech I and at the rear end of the barrel 2 is formed a cylindrical bore 2I extending coaxially with said barrel, through which bore coaxially extends the barrel tube 5, and in the rear end of which bore is fitted the ring gasket I6, through which gasket said tube 5 slidably extends, there being a plunger 22 slidably fitted in said bore 2I and a coil spring 23 surrounding the barrel tube 5 in said bore between said plunger and the forward end of said bore, and there being a stop 24 in the form of a collar or ring secured on said barrel tube between said plunger 22 and the ring gasket I6, in an air and gas chamber 25, formed by said bore, between said plunger 22 and the ring gasket I6 in the rear end of said bore.

In the pistol handle 3 and lower part of the.

breech I is formed a pocket 26 for the air or gas bulb 4, which pocket is closed at its upper end by a breech wall 21 and is open at its lower end, but said lower end of said pocket is normally closed by a screw plug 28, which is threaded in said pocket lower end, as indicated at 29, for detachably holding the air or gas bulb 4 in said pocket 26. A small bleed tube 30 extends from the air and gas chamber 25 through a portion of the breech I into the upper end of the bulb pocket 26, and the lower end of said tube 30, in said upper end of said pocket, is tapered and pointed as shown at 3|, so that when an air or gas bulb 4 is introduced into said pocket 25 through its lower end, and the plug 28 is screwed into said lower end of said pocket against the lower end wall of said bulb 4, said bulb will be forced upwardly in said pocket by said plug 28 and said lower pointed end 3| of said tube 30 will puncture the upper end wall of the air and gas bulb 4 and project into the upper end of said bulb, whereupon the air or gas under pressure in said bulb 4 will bleed from said bulb out through said tube 30 into the air or gas chamber 25, where said air or gas, acting upon the plunger 22, will maintain said plunger in its forward position against the tension of the spring 23, as shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings.

The ring gasket I6 in the air and gas chamber 25, and the ports I5 in the slidable barrel tube 5 which slides through said gasket, form a seal 32 for controlling the admission of air or gas under pressure from the air or gas chamber 25 into the barrel tube '5 and into a loading tube 1 in the rear end portion of said barrel tube, behind the foremost pellet 8 in said loading tube for projecting said pellet from the pistol through the barrel tube 5. I

The spring seal actuating means III, which is controlled by the trigger mechanism 9, for actuating the seal 32, comprises the slidable barrel tube 5; the sear II secured on said barrel tube for engagement by the arm I8 of the barrel tube arresting lever I9 of the trigger mechanism 9, for arresting said tube in its retracted position and the seal III in its closed position; and the coil spring 20 surrounding the rear end portion I2 of the barrel tube 5 for compression between the sear I1 and the shoulder wall 20, when the barrel tube 5 is retracted and the pistol is held cocked by the engagement of the sear H by the arresting lever I9.

The trigger mechanism 9 includes the trigger II, which is pivoted on a pivot pin 33 mounted in the forward end of a trigger frame 34 forwardly of the breech I and below the barrel 2; the barrel tube arresting lever I9, pivoted at 35 in the breech I, and formed with a depending rounded abutment 36 on its rear end; a bell crank trip lever 31, formed with a long horizontal arm 38 and a short vertical arm 39 extending upwardly from the forward end of said long arm, and a rounded head 40 extending upwardly from the rear end of said long arm adjacent the abutment 36 on the rear end of 'said' barrel tube arresting lever I9, the trip lever 31 being pivoted at the juncture of its arms 38 and 39 in the breech I by a pivot M; a connecting rod 42, connected at its forward end to a short arm 43 extending upwardly from the upper pivoted end of the trigger II, and connected at its rear end to the short vertical arm 39 of the trip lever 31; and a coil spring 44 surrounding said connecting rod 42, bearing at its rear end against said short vertical arm 39 of the bell crank trip lever 31 and bearing at its forward end against a bearrthe shell4Stand arepplacedlon itudinallytinathe 1 wshell iwithqtheir spherical :heads 50 qforward-i and athEiIFSk-ilt535 I: rearward. fzA coilespring Ellis-placed :in I the rear; partuof the shell 46, nbearingaatiits rear :end:againstrtherrearsmd wall- :41 ofitheloa-ding tube I and the forward end of said spring bearing :againstJthe sk-irt I of the rearmostpellet 8 in saidz-shellwand forcingsrall'-ofitherpellets, one against the other forwardly in said shell until arrested by the engagement'otthe, sphericalhead 5B "of thefforemost' I inner sides of the spring'fingers4'8wn theiforward end of the shell-46.

Theoperation-pf'myinventionis as follows: 'iThe-j-bul-b 4*being filled"with= highly compressed "air-or gas and' held inthe' pocket" -3;an-d' breech l"' of the pistol by th with' the pointed lower end3l 'of 530, having-puncturedthe upper.:end walliofithe :air' or. igasibulb' 4 and extending :iinto .thegupper "end "of said bulb, 'so"thatthe"air or gasbleeds from said container through said needle tube 30 into the chamber 25, the pistol may be first set for projecting a pellet 8 by drawing the barrel tube 5 rearwardly against the tension of the spring until the arm I8 of the barrel-tube arresting lever I9 of the trigger mechanism 9 engages the forward side of the barrel-tube sear I1 and arrests said barrel tube 5 in its retracted position; the pistol is then loaded by placing a loading tube 1 containing pellets 8 in the loading means 6, upon unscrewing and removing the cap I3 from the rear end of the barrel tube 5 and introducing said loading tube into the rear end portion I2 of said barrel tube and then screwing the cap I3 on the rear end of the barrel tube 5 until said cap, engaging the rear end wall 41 of the loading tube 1, forces said loading tube forwardly into said barrel tube until the air or gas inlets 49, in the forward end portion of said loading tube, register with the air and gas inlets I5 in the barrel tube 5; upon pulling the trigger I I the barrel-tube arresting lever I9 is swung clockwise on its pivot 35, through the medium of the trigger arm 43, connecting rod 42, and trip lever 31, against the tension of the spring 44, until the sear engaging arm I8 of said arresting lever I9 disengages the forward side of the sear I1, so that the spring 20, engaging the sear I7, forces the barrel tube 5 forwardly in the barrel 2 until the inlets I5 in said barrel tube pass beyond the ring gasket I6 and break the seal 32, whereupon the air or gas under high pressure in the chamber passes through said inlets I5 into the forward end portion of the loading tube I, behind the foremost pellet 8 in said loading tube, and said pellet is projected by said air or gas forwardly past the spring fingers 48 on the forward end of said loading tube 1 and out through the barrel tube 5 and barrel 2, said spring fingers 48 thereupon springing back inwardly to arrest the next e screwgplugf28, the needleitube ithe 'i i said pellet "in-the shell :Withf'the 26 in thehandle 5 .':;following pellet 18 projected forwardlycin theglcadw ing tubesl-ibyrthe-coil:springefimrinetherrear exid epQrtioIrof-isaid loading tubevl as: the; compressed qairworygasipasses outq=of the gchamber 251 through the; ports- I-5 -in= the-barrel? tube-,5 :1 and: throughthe -inlets 49 1 into: thes'loading tube 1,: andi. thenceiout through the barrel 1311136115 behind-said foremost pellet 8,: the a-irror;gas pressurea in said {chamber -.;2-,5 .-is:; relievedoat the rear-,of' the vplun erifleand plunger 11S"@OI'CEdiTGaDWaKdJYJbY1 the'sexpa-nsion spring 23 against the stop 24, securechon'zjthe -..barre ltube c5, whereupon-;-saidixplunger,rengaging said stop, rearwardly-[until thessear Ir'l ron saidtbarrelzitube IpaSSBSfOYBT-"I the searengaging arm i8. ofithebarrel .tub'e arresting; lever I9,wdepressing: saidisearripaiid t-he (sear end 1 of said ,sarresting rlever, uuntil sai'd sear I -'I;escapes said sear:engagingrarmt1I;8;swhere- ..upcn-said; arresting lever I9 swings'coun-terclockewise byggravityguntil the: arm ,ISoQntheifOnWard =:=end-:of;said;arres.ting ileverrl'9 enga es the-.- forward end-50f. saidz sear I-'I--. and-.=- arrests'ithe"rbarrehtubezB its; retractedppositiong and; cocks. the pistol? for ea:repetition of the labove'fdescribedc cycleiofroperuations; and particularly kthejproj ection :of Lthernext .-f0remost pelletaBzinc.thetloading tiibelxli'from the elletzBrisrprojectedrby the;qpistolianduthefpistol returned: to wits rcocked;positiomryvith. thessear 'iengagingzarm 31,8201: arresting lever t. tQ-a engaging them-sear :I'I: andziholding' therbarrel LtubeiEr-intits rretractedeposition, arfditheiairirorigas inletsiiclosed aby sthermirigrgasket .1 I .finof ,theriseal i3 2 ithezair :.or .srgas continuing;to:bleeditfromtthdibulbi 4tthrough needle tubei30iinto ,the uchamber 1: 25, cbuildsuup sufiicient pressure in said chamber to force the plunger 22 back to its initial position against the tension of the spring 23 until the spring is compressed sufiiciently to force the plunger 22 rearwardly against the abutment 24 to cook the pistol with its barrel tube 5 in its retracted position for projecting the next pellet from the pistol when the trigger II is pulled the next time.

The operation of my invention, as above described, applies to a semi-automatic gun, in that it is assumed that the trigger is released each time a pellet is projected from the gun and the gun is cooked by the spring 23, after projecting each pellet, for projecting the succeeding pellet,

Upon pulling the trigger and holding it without releasing it, the engaging arm I8 will not engage the sear I! to hold the gun cocked, whereupon the projecting operation of the gun, as above described, will be repeated until all of the pellets in the loading tube I will be successively projected therefrom. My gun operated in this manner without releasing the trigger then becomes an automatic gun.

It will be obvious that my gun may be operated as a semi-automatic gun or as a full automatic gun, depending upon whether the trigger is released after projecting a pellet.

The modification of my invention shown in Figs. 4 to 9, inclusive, is substantially the same in construction as the form of my invention shown in Figs. 1 to 3, inclusive, of the drawings, except that a stationary barrel tube 5' is secured in the barrel 2 and is substituted for the slidable barrel tube 5 and a slidable sleeve 55 is fitted on said stationary barrel tube 5', the rear end portion of which sleeve extends rearwardly through and beyond the rear end wall 56 of the air or gas chamber 25, and said sleeve 55 carries, on its rear outer end, the sear I1 and, intermef orces. said-l stoprand; the rbarrel ztubenE diate its ends, in the chamber 25, the abutment 24, while the plunger 22 is slidably fitted on said sleeve 55 in the bore 2| and is engaged by the spring 23, and said sleeve 55 is provided with inlet ports 51 arranged to register with the inlet ports I in the barrel tube 5' when the sleeve 55 is projected forwardly by spring 20, which ports [5 register with the inlet ports 49 in the loading tube 1 in loading position, in the rear end portion l2 of the barrel tube 5.

I claim:

1. A fluid-pressure operated automatic gun including a loading means for a loading tube containing pellets, a fluid storage chamber, a fluid supply bulb, means for bleeding fluid from said bulb into said storage chamber, a seal for sealing off fluid from said storage chamber to the rear of the foremost pellet in said loading tube, a trigger mechanism for holding said seal in sealing position when the gun is cocked, a spring for opening said seal upon pulling the trigger of said trigger mechanism for admitting fluid under pressure behind said foremost pellet for projecting said pellet from the gun, said loading tube containing means for advancing the next pellet in said tube into projecting position, when the foremost pellet is projected from said loading tube and the pistol, a plunger forming one end of said storage chamber, a spring engaging said plunger, which plunger is moved against said plunger engaging spring to enlarge said chamber and compress said plunger engaging spring, when the gun is cooked and said seal is closed and pressure is built up in said chamber, and means engaged by said plunger under pressure of said plunger spring for cocking the gun.

2. A fluid-pressure operated automatic gun including a detachable fluid supply bulb, a loading tube for containing a plurality of pellets, a seal for sealing off said fluid from said pellets when the gun is cocked, a trigger mechanism for holding the gun cocked, said seal being arranged to be opened when the trigger of said trigger mechanism is pulled, to permit said fluid from said bulb to project the foremost pellet from said loading means of the pistol, means for bringing the next pellet into projecting position each time a pellet is projected as aforesaid, a plunger, a plunger engaging spring, which plunger is moved forwardly by said fluid against the tension of said spring to compress said spring when the seal is closed, and means engaged by said plunger under the influence of said plunger spring for cocking the gun, when said seal is opened, upon pulling the trigger of said trigger mechanism.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,110,509 Latka Mar. 8, 1938 2,147,003 Kozurik Feb. 14, 1939 2,288,891 Dreyer July 7, 1942 2,297,947 Dreyer Oct. 6, 1942 2,339,064 Dreyer Jan. 11, 1944 2,456,159 Tratsch Dec. 14, 1948 2,505,972 Johnson May 2, 1950 2,537,358 Lincoln Jan. 9, 1951 2,554,116 Monner May 22, 1951 2,566,181 Fitch Aug. 28, 195.1 2,572,176 Mihalyi Oct. 23, 1951 

